


There's a devil in this town, I'm begging him to stay

by ChicagosLights



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: slight angst but not really
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-01
Updated: 2020-06-01
Packaged: 2021-03-02 21:07:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24483253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChicagosLights/pseuds/ChicagosLights
Summary: A friend sent me this cute animation based on a song by Arms Akimbo, I loved it, I wanted to write a fic based on it so I did. Pretty much Shane's a demon, doesn't want Ryan to know, Ryan ends up finding out in the WORST way possible, and there's a little bit of angst but in the end Shane doesn't leave.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 37





	There's a devil in this town, I'm begging him to stay

_ He was never supposed to know.  _

_ There’d been plenty of humans with shiny bright souls that Shane had followed, had toyed with the idea of ruining them, but he never thought he’d meet someone like him.  _

_ Fucking Ryan Bergara. _

_ Ryan was something else; jumpy at almost any noise when they were ghost hunting (Shane scaring them all off with a look, any of them hurt Ryan and he’d burn their spirits up for good) and demon looking (Shane played it off like it was nothing but with the threat of permanently trapping them in hell with no escape Ryan never had anything happen to him). The dude was passionate about his work though and many other things, dorky and a good friend, kind in his own awkward way; whenever the two of them got into a banter moment and laughed it almost made Shane forget who he was.  _

_ Not a human, a monster in their eyes.  _

_ Ryan was never supposed to know the truth about Shane, but all it took was that one house, that fucking round ugly brick house for Shane’s little bubble of comfort to shatter for good. The forest around the house had been used for supposed occult activity and while Shane had jabbed at the fact Ryan couldn’t find solid evidence the demon was on edge because yes he could feel the negative energy radiating around. Ryan was going over the history of the area as they ventured inside, Shane didn’t mean to stick so close to him and it wasn’t until they’d reached the stairs to the second floor that Ryan had stopped dead in his tracks to look up at him. _

_ “Dude what are you doing?”  _

_ “Huh?” looking down Shane realized he’d practically glued himself to Ryan’s back “just staying close to you, don’t want the nasty demons to grab you right?”  _

_ “Don’t say that! They could be listening” oh Ryan, he didn’t even know the half of it “I’m not going to run okay, just...some space please?”  _

_ “You’re acting like I’m a bug, afraid I’m going to eat you?” he poked Ryan’s neck which made him jump “now I’ve marked you” _

_ “Dude shut up” but Ryan laughed and headed upstairs “look I’m gonna do the alone time early tonight, this place has a lot of history we need to cover” _

_ Wait what? Shane felt his stomach drop at that “hey come on, we need to drag it out for the viewers” _

_ Ryan paused at the top platform and looked down at him confused “Shane they already know our formula. You can eat my bones or whatever when I get back, the last room of the hall is supposed to be the demon room” _

_ “You’re being brave now though, why don’t I just stand outside the room?” Ryan didn’t look influenced, Shane wasn’t sensing any influencing going on “I won’t make a peep”  _

_ “Uh-huh. No, just stay down here and, I don’t know talk shit about me or something” like an idiot Shane stood there looking up as Ryan disappeared.  _

_ Every part of Shane was screaming at him now to just go up after him anyway, he could bitch all he wanted or Shane could just make the excuse that he could at least check out another room while Ryan was in the demon room; instead Shane just sighed and slowly dissipated to fully check out the house, nothing in the basement and nothing really in the first floor besides ghosts- _

_ “ _ Run _!” Shane’s eyes snapped open and he looked towards the foggy image of a woman, she was cowering in the corner by the stairs “ _ Take him away and run! If you care about him you’ll run _!” _

_ “What are you talking about, speak clearly” Shane’s eyes turned black like an ink dot in water “what are you planning to do to him?”  _

_ “ _ Not us, the one in that room! He’ll take his soul, you have to hurry- _ ” the woman suddenly shrieked, but once she disappeared a new scream filled the house.  _

_ Ryan.  _

_ Shane didn’t even run, turning into a black mist he tried to slip through the floor only to find himself outside the door while inside Ryan was screaming like he was being tortured. Shane started hitting the door, hands changing to claws but the wood seemed to replace itself each time he chipped away at it.  _

_ “Shane! Help me please, fuck help me!” Ryan’s voice sounded distorted and ripped up, in the room with him Shane could hear cackling of multiple voices mixed with more screams from the human “GET AWAY FROM ME!”  _

_ Maybe the demon felt Shane on the other side of the door, maybe the ghost lady and whoever else was in the house helped weaken whatever was blocking the door, maybe some deity saw a poor soul about to be killed and gave mercy; it didn’t matter because Shane finally shattered the door and was inside the room before it fully registered what he was doing, behind him to his right he heard Ryan scream his name but in front of him all he saw was the large black shape of something that was going to pay for hurting his human. He’d felt the skin rip and tear, felt the blood splatter all over his face and stain his clothes, heard the thing scream as Shane banished it from the mortal plane, and it was then that everything came back into hyper focus.  _

Oh please no 

_ Slowly he looked over his shoulder down at the form of Ryan shaking, pressed back against the wall with a look on his face Shane had rarely seen.  _

Please no, don’t be afraid of me Ryan __

_ His horns were out, half his face was coated in blood and his claws were shiny with it, he knew his eyes were pure black with red irises and Shane knew he looked like everything Ryan imagined demons to appear as. Neither moved and the seconds ticked by, Ryan didn’t even look like he was breathing, eyes wider than saucer plates and that fucking look of fear and worst of all betrayal.  _

_ “Ryan” Shane stopped, his voice echoing with more than one and the poor human had flinched like he’d been struck “Ryan please…”  _

_ He was like a terrified Rabbit, Shane slowly turned to fully face him and even as he shifted to appear human again nothing could take back the damage that had been done. He thought about moving towards Ryan, maybe disappearing from the room; Ryan made the decision for him, scrambling up and tearing down the hallway as Shane stood there watching. He felt it bubble up in throat as he heard the distant front door slam, tears burned his eyes and slowly he sank down to the ground; no, no, please no this wasn’t happening.  _

* * *

The phone kept buzzing and Ryan stared down at it, tears dripping down his cheeks in the same trails they’d been making since those weeks ago-fuck how many was it, 4? How many missed calls from Shane did he have, how many times had he tried contacting him, how many fucking excuses had Ryan made as to why he was staying inside now and avoiding his job? Too many to count he’d say, as always the call would stop and the message of missed call would mock him from the screen. He turned his head back up to his ceiling to stare at nothing, why didn’t he just come into Ryan’s home if had power? Demons weren’t supposed to care about people, that’s what he’d always known and learned. 

So why was it fucking him up so bad that Shane had  _ lied  _ to him? 

He flinched at that, what was he a fucking first grader? He was a demon, they didn’t care about human emotions and he probably wanted to lure Ryan into a false sense of safety before finally deciding ‘fuck it’ and killed him. Shane wasn’t lying to him-hadn’t even  _ promised  _ anything to him about being a demon and it wasn’t like Ryan had ever asked just joked with him about it. Again the phone buzzed and Ryan shut his eyes tightly as more tears flooded his eyes, if he knew all of this and thought all of that then why was he still so hurt by knowing the truth? 

_ “Get the fuck away from me!” Ryan had his back pressed to the hotel wall, shaking like a leaf and his vision was so blurred with tears he almost couldn’t see Shane “get-stay away!”  _

_ “Ryan please-”  _

_ “Stop! Stop saying my name, you’re not Shane-where’s Shane! You’re possessing him!” that had to be it, that had to! He couldn’t have been friends with a creature he was trying to prove existed. _

_ “I’m not” Shane sounds so weak that for a second Ryan’s heart jerked “Ryan please, please just let me explain”  _

_ “Shut up!” Ryan had grabbed the flask of holy water and held it in front of him, as if that would actually do anything “Stay back, I’m warning you”  _

_ “Ryan will you just let me fucking talk!” it occurs then that Shane is crying too-no! Demons can’t cry, he was trying to manipulate him “you weren’t supposed to find out-fuck no I mean-I wanted to tell you just not this way!”  _

_ “You were going to tell me after you killed me, you can’t bullshit me!” Ryan’s has sunken to the floor now but his grip on the flask is almost painful now “get away!”  _

_ “I wasn’t going to ever hurt you! Ryan I would never hurt you, you don’t even know how many times I’ve protected you! I never wanted to eat you or kill or whatever else you’re thinking, I just-I wanted to be around you…” Shane trails off and looks deflated “I just wanted to be around you...you’re really special, Ry, you are”  _

_ Maybe that’s what broke him, because Ryan began to cry openly with loud sobs; Shane looks miserably at him but...just disappears like dust _

Ryan’s eyes snap open and he sat up fast, gasping at the pain of that memory running through him; fuck, could back memories make you die? He ran a hand through his hair before looking over at his phone and freezing completely; Shane had texted him. 

_ Ryan?  _

_ Please, Ry _

It felt like a dagger had been driven through his heart, he picked up his phone slowly and stared down at the words. They’d been sent...an hour ago? Had Ryan fallen asleep? Wouldn’t surprise him with all that crying he’d been doing...his heart jumped again as the little dots popped up but disappeared starting a nasty cycle of appearing and disappearing before stopping altogether. What possessed him then, to suddenly grab his jacket from the couch and hurry to throw his shoes on, what possessed him then to grab his car keys and run out of his apartment to his car? 

Maybe it was Shane, he thought as he drove into traffic, maybe Shane was deciding to use his demon magic and make Ryan come to him and...talk it out? He wasn’t sure but he focused on just getting to Shane’s apartment before anything else. It felt like an eternity before time really moved again, as he saw Shane’s apartment building come into view and he pulled into the parking lot he noticed Shane’s car wasn’t there. A feeling like a rock dropped in his gut hit him hard and he snatched his phone up to see he’d missed a text:

_ Goodbye.  _

No. 

That was  _ not  _ a fucking option Shane, that was a bullshit thing to send. 

Ryan almost tripped as he left his car, running to get inside and probably looking like an idiot as he ran up the stairs to Shane’s floor; he passed by a lady with a quick “sorry!” before she called back to him “no one lives there anymore!” that screeches Ryan to a halt. He looked back at her down the hall, jogging over and stopping. 

“That guy moved out earlier this morning, I guess he had some family problems? Poor guy, was always nice. Are you a friend of his?” the way she asked that had something hanging in the air though, probably judging by Ryan’s still tear-stained face 

“I-yes, I didn’t have time to say goodbye…” Ryan shrugged and apologized for almost running into her before heading back outside. 

He deserved this, didn’t he? This was punishment for not waiting for Shane to talk, for not letting him explain everything, for ignoring him-but Ryan looked down the block and immediately ran. 

*

It hurt like hell; the silence for weeks, not answering calls, Shane thought of times to just head over to Ryan’s but he doubted that would end well. It hurt like hell but he felt like he deserved, after another ignored call Shane finally decided it was time to leave, why stay when one of the people you cared about was gone more or less? Obi had been bummed out by it, did he really have to go back to being uncomfortably large? Shane had promised they’d go somewhere else, find some place easy to manipulate so they didn’t recognize him but even his hell-cat knew that Shane didn’t want to leave. It was funny to Shane in a sad way, he’d told his landlord he was leaving but before hand he’d given stuff away or put it in his personal storage; while doing that he’d sent two texts to Ryan, knowing fully damn well they’d be ignored but...he really hoped. 

An hour passed and there had been no response, Shane didn’t usually give up but at that point...well, bye-bye apartment; with Obi already going ahead of him Shane left the building and started walking down the block, he was pretty sure there was still an active portal somewhere...he stopped and pulled his phone out like an idiot, what was there left to say to Ryan? I’m sorry probably, he started to type that but stopped; it hurt like hell to not be able to say goodbye in person but even if he did Ryan would probably-he shook his head at that thought and quickly sent a ‘Goodbye’ before pocketing his phone again. Well, good bye mortal realm for another few centuries, maybe Shane won’t come back this time actually. What would be the point anyway, he wasn’t needed and it wasn’t as if he’d ever actually gnabbed any souls, he might as well just stay down in hell and-

“Shane!” 

Had he gone crazy or did he just hear Ryan? 

It felt like some weird movie scene when he turned around because yes, there was Ryan running towards him and grabbing at his arm; when their eyes locked he saw Ryan looked like he’d been crying for nights on end. 

“S..stay” Ryan’s grip on his arm was tight and he hiccuped at a sob “Stay, Stay” 

And the universe was funny like that, because Ryan pulls Shane into a tight hug and buries his face into him and Shane wraps his arms around him as he cries against him. Maybe they were getting looks, Shane could’ve cared less, he himself was trying not to cry because really they didn’t need to have a Hollywood-esque drama scene going on in the neighborhood.

* * *

“Why?” Shane looked up from the garbage bag he’d been filling, how much takeout could one guy eat? 

“What?” 

“Why didn’t you kill me” Ryan was wrapped up in a blanket sitting on the couch, he looked a little less exhausted now that he’d gotten some food in him. 

Shane had driven them back to Ryan’s apartment (he was probably going to have to make sure his landlord not only forgot that he’d moved out but that there was no one moving in) and after making sure Ryan didn’t pass out from dehydration had started cleaning up the living room since he’d apparently set up camp there. 

“Can we talk after I’ve cleared your landfill? Seriously I’ll actually cook you something, you shouldn't be eating this much take-out” he grabbed another box before tying up the garbage bag “or we can go to this greek place I know, does that sound good to you?” 

“Um, yeah, it does. So stop ignoring the question and answer please?” 

Shane sighed and sat furthest from Ryan, he didn’t want to push it yet “okay so, this is going to probably sound scary to you but um...you’re special. I mean, you have a really bright soul and I like it”

“Yep you’re scaring me now” he winced at Ryan scooting closer to the arm of the couch “but continue on” 

“I mean you’re special because-I’ve been around for a while and I’ve seen a lot of souls Ryan but yours, I don’t know. You’re special to me, I don’t know how to really say it, I’m not saying ‘oh look a human delicacy’ when I say you’re special, I just mean-I care about you okay?” wow that was super smooth, Shane. 

Ryan however seemed to be considering this “you said...you said you were protecting me a lot whenever we went places…” 

“Yeah, look be angry at me if you want but yes ghosts are real and I’ll admit a lot of places we went? They were harmless as hell. But some places I scared them off because they honestly wanted to kill you” for a moment Shane’s claws started to come up but quickly went away again “As for demons...I’ve had a few I’ve almost fought to keep you safe”

“I’m a rare commodity huh?” Ryan laughed dryly 

“I would  _ never  _ let them get you” Shane paused then turned to sit facing Ryan “I-I know it’s a lot and I probably traumatized you when I killed that thing but...I care about you dude, you’re my friend”

That got a laugh out of Ryan “god-nobody says it like you do, weirdo. So, you’re not going to eat me”

“No, Ryan, I am not going to eat you. I don’t eat people and honestly I haven’t dragged anyone to hell or manipulated a soul for a  _ long  _ time. That-that probably doesn’t bode well for me does that?”

Ryan shrugged “I don’t know, you’re...you’re a demon dude, I don’t expect you to be nice-I mean-”

“I know what you mean” Shane was laughing though, he looked relieved honestly “you’re not on my list though okay? I wouldn’t-I’d never do that to you” 

“We’ve established that” Ryan paused then scooted a little closer, he reached over from under the blankets and took one of Shane’s hands “just...stay please? I mean you probably need to get your apartment back but stay, I’m really tired from crying but I want to make sure when I wake up you haven’t left me” 

“I won’t, I’ll stay here to keep tormenting you forever” 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!!   
> The animation was on tumblr by a tumblr user named q-unsolved.


End file.
